Microsoft Targeted by Protesters

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Microsoft Targeted by Protesters

REDMOND, Washington – Police in riot gear arrested one man among a group of about 60 protesters marching to Microsoft headquarters Monday, a police spokeswoman said.

The man, whose name has not been released, was booked for disorderly conduct, after he stepped off the sidewalk and into the street during the march, Redmond police said.

The protesters, led by the Direct Action Network (DAN), marched along city sidewalks that extend inside the sprawling Microsoft campus carrying signs protesting corporate greed and an effigy of Microsoft chief executive Bill Gates.

Eyewitnesses said the suspect was dressed in the black garb worn by a small group of anarchists blamed for rioting and looting as tens of thousands peacefully protested World Trade Organization meetings in Seattle last November.

Some two dozen heavily armed police arrived as the march began but the protest was peaceful, aside from the lone arrest, eyewitnesses said.

Microsoft spokesman Dan Leach said the software giant had beefed up security after consulting with police and after protesters failed to respond to emails to discuss their plans and their concerns.

"Obviously, we respect everyone's right to express their views peacefully," Leach said. "We're proud of the economic success we've had and the ability to create family wage jobs. I don't think that's an issue for us."

DAN activists last week said Microsoft's growing stable of millionaires had driven up Seattle-area property values, crowding out working-class families.

Gates, whose Microsoft stock has made him the richest man in the world, has pledged to ultimately give away his vast fortune and has already donated over $20 billion to his charitable fund, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.